


After The Storm

by skimmy77



Series: Havenrock [2]
Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: Gen, Olicity (implied), character fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-13
Updated: 2016-05-13
Packaged: 2018-06-08 06:19:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,006
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6842362
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/skimmy77/pseuds/skimmy77
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Follow up to I'll Catch You (In My Arms). Felicity finally let herself grieve, thanks to Oliver. Now she can put the pieces of her life back together, starting with fighting for her job.</p>
            </blockquote>





	After The Storm

The skies of Star City reflected Felicity’s mood: gray, somber, and heavy with the invisible weight of an approaching storm. Any minute now, the clouds would shed the moisture they carried from the Pacific, in a boisterous manner that would cause everyone to seek shelter and ride it out.

A fitting analogy for Felicity’s current state of mind.

She stared into the sky from the safety of The Grind and Jolt, protected by the coffee shop’s double pane windows. The crawl of the clouds mesmerized her mind, putting her in a-- _calm_  was the wrong word;  _numb_  was better--state. Her body was sore from not enough sleep, her head felt tight as a migraine approached, and her heart was empty, devoid of emotions, having shed some tears of her own last night.

Oliver always had a knack for breaching her emotional defenses, and last night proved no different. His words crumbled her walls, but his kindness and understanding softened the blow, providing a safe place for her to fall apart.

Now she just felt drained.

The sharp  _ca-clack, ca-clack_  of Oxford shoes approached at a brisk pace from behind Felicity, signaling that her appointment was here. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, composing herself for this meeting.

“Mr. Dennis,” she greeted, her tone devoid of warmth. “Thank you for finally meeting with me.”

“Ms. Smoak,” he nodded, matching her tone. “Your message caught my attention.”

She looked down at the table with a smile that didn’t reach her eyes. “Right. Well, like I said, I’ll walk away from Palmer Tech after you hear me out.”

“What else could you possibly have to say?” he scoffed.

Felicity took another deep breath and centered herself, folding her hands on the table. Then she lifted her head and looked directly into Mr. Dennis’s eyes.

“What I’m about to tell you,” she began, “is highly classified, and talking about it could put me in a federal prison.”

His eyebrows shot up in surprise.

“But some things are more important than following the rules. Like doing the right thing.”

Mr. Dennis seemed intrigued, and leaned forward in his chair. “I’m listening.”

Felicity steeled herself against the grief that threatened to bubble up at her next words. “By now, you know that a nuclear missile detonated in Havenrock, Virginia.” She gave him a pained smile. “That’s not the classified part.”

He nodded at her to continue.

“What you and most of the world don’t know, what they’re trying to keep under wraps, is that the devastation could have been much worse.” She leaned in to whisper, “as in, every nuclear missile on this planet being launched, worse.”

Mr. Dennis’s face turned ashen as her words sunk in. “How do you know this?”

She dropped her gaze to her hands. “I have a certain skill set, and sometimes I get called upon to help with certain...problems.”

He sat back in his seat, his eyes riveted on hers as he processed this information. “So that thing you were working on that was more important—“

“Was worth it,” she finished for him.

Mr. Dennis nodded, his gaze dropping to the table. The silence between them stretched out to just past comfortable, before he raised his head. “I’m not sure this will change anything, Ms. Smoak.”

Felicity pressed her lips together, holding back her ire. With as much patience as she could muster, she said, “Mr. Dennis, I understand the Board’s need to turn a profit and improve the bottom line, but that is extremely short-sighted thinking. You may be able to keep the company going during your lifetimes, but without meaningful contributions to society, Palmer Tech will be just another tech company in a sea of tech companies.

“With all due respect,” she continued, “I don’t think any of you understand the opportunities that Palmer Tech can provide for the world. For humanity. You’re all so busy staring at what’s in front of your nose, that you’re missing the big picture. We can make a difference. And you need someone at the helm who can see that.”

“And that person is you?” he asked skeptically.

“Yes,” she replied, passion igniting her eyes. “It’s not about me getting my job back. It’s about someone fighting for a better future, not just for the 1%, but for everyone. Starting with Havenrock.” Her voice broke as a tiny pocket of grief crawled up her throat, but she swallowed it back down, hard.

“What exactly are you proposing?”

Felicity shook her head. “I’m not sure yet. All I know is that I have to do _something._ I—“ She swallowed again. “We, our team, failed to stop all the missiles. And we have to make it right.”

“And you need Palmer Tech to do that?”

“Palmer Tech has resources that can make a real difference. The R&D team alone has the talent and drive to do whatever it takes to help those affected by the bomb. This disaster can galvanize the entire company to move beyond just surviving. We can thrive, and grow, and leave a lasting legacy.” At the lingering doubt in his eyes, she added, “Palmer Tech can become a leader in this global community.”

The doubt in Mr. Dennis’s eyes dissipated, and a gleam of inspiration took its place. Felicity smiled.

“All right,” he finally conceded. “I’ll talk to the Board. I suggest you come up with a solid proposal to present at the next meeting. We’ll see what happens after that.”

For the first time in days, Felicity beamed as the burden in her heart lightened. “Thank you, Mr. Dennis. You won’t regret it.”

The side of his mouth ticked up, and Felicity wondered (silently) if he was having a stroke. “Don’t make any promises yet, Ms. Smoak.”

She huffed in amusement, and nodded at him as he left. She turned her attention back to the sky, as rain started to fall in fat, heavy drops. It was a good sign, she decided.

After the storm, blue skies would follow.


End file.
